26-year old shooting guard Jared Dudley is taking advantage of his first real opportunity to start in the NBA. He has played in 21 games (16 starts) for the Suns so far this year and he is averaging 30.0 minutes, 10.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.0 steal per game. The Suns probably would like Dudley to shoot more as only Steve Nash and Marcin Gortat are averaging over 15 points per game so far this year. Regardless, Dudley have proven to be a more than capable starting player for the Suns.

The Suns pretty much stole 27-year old center Marcin Gortat from the Orlando Magic at the trade deadline in the Jason Richardson deal. Gortat has turned into a force for the Suns as he has brought toughness to the paint on both ends of the court. He has played in 17 games (all starts) for the Suns so far this year and he is averaging 30.9 minutes, 15.4 points, 9.9 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. He is shooting an amazing 59.1% from the floor this season for the Suns. He will need to get better at the charity stripe as he is only hitting 64.3% from the free throw line. Gortat is quickly becoming one of the better centers in the NBA.

38-year old point guard Steve Nash is still playing at a high level despite his advanced age. Nash played in 8 games (all starts) for the Suns this year and he is averaging 28.8 minutes, 12.0 points, 1.8 rebounds and 9.8 assists on 50% shooting from the floor. Nash is still moving up the NBA’s all-time lists. He is now #6 in assists (9,330) in league history and he is also #10 in three point shots made (1,575). Nash has also passed up Mark Price for the all-time free throw % as he has hit 90.4% of them in his career so far. The Suns are probably going to have Nash start looking for his shot more in the near future.

29-year old forward Hakim Warrick is amazingly leading the way for the Suns so far this year. Warrick has played in 5 games (0 starts) for the Suns so far this year and he is averaging 23.2 minutes, 12.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. I don’t see Warrick leading the team in scoring too much longer, because for some reason, the Suns just don’t let the guy play enough. But look for Warrick to keep giving the Suns solid production off the bench.

27-year old center Marcin Gortat was very solid for the Suns after coming over last year in a big deal with the Orlando Magic. Gortat played in 55 games (12 starts) for the Suns last year and he averaged 29.7 minutes, 13.0 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.3 blocked shots per game. He played in 80 games (14 starts) overall last year for the Magic & Suns and he averaged 25.4 minutes, 10.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 1.1 blocked shots. Gortat has now played in 230 games (17 starts) in his first four years in the NBA and he is averaging 17.2 points, 5.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. Finally out of Dwight Howard’s shadow in Orlando, Gortat will have his chance to shine with the Suns.